Restoring the Church From Within Pt II: Invite Others

"Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters, and gave food and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs by sea from Lebanon to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrus king of Persia." (Ezra 3:7)
"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: . . . Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not easily broken." (Ecc 4:9,12 NIV)

Rarely does anyone accomplish something on their own. Columbus took three ships when he accidently found the New World. Magellan never circumnavigated the world, yet he is credited with being the first to do so. Neil Armstrong never would have made it to the moon without the help of others on the ground, and "Buzz" Aldrin with him in the capsule. Moses led the Hebrew people out of Egypt with the help of his brother Aaron. Daniel had three friends to help him out. Paul had Barnabas and later Silas. Jesus knew the importance of having another person with you, "Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits." (Mark 6:7 NIV). When it comes to restoring the church from within, we must invite others.
The first step to inviting others is to invite them to church with you. The people that you want to invite to church are those that are unchurched and those that are unbelievers. You want to avoid proselytizing. If they attend a church, don’t reshuffle the deck, but there is something for you to invite them to do, and that will be addressed later. Our competition is not with the other church down the street. Our competition is with Satan, and winning people’s lives to Christ.
Who are the unchurched? The unchurched are those that have at one time or another, experienced attending a church. Your responsibility then is to figure out why they no longer attend church. They will give you a plethora of excuses, and realize that is what they are. All the church asks for is money. The music is too slow. The music is too loud. They’re all hypocrites. The pastor wears purple too much. As a believer, you must somehow tear down those excuses. When dealing with unchurched people, it is still best to use scripture. Unchurched people, know that believers use the Bible, and most unchurched people still read the Bible.
One of the first scriptures you point to them is Hebrews 10:25 "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (NIV) Break that passage down for them. "Let us not give up meeting together." It is a good idea to continue to meet with fellow Christians. Why? It comes down to the strength of a group opposed to the strength of a single person. Satan is like a lion looking for the weak to devour. He seeks out those that are alone, to lead them to destruction. "Be self controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (I Peter 5:8 NIV)
"As some are in the habit of doing." Others have already given up meeting together. They have fallen from the faith and are floundering. They have become weakened, because the cord they use is not strong. They have given into (conformed) to the world’s standards and have been tempted away by Satan. They may believe that they are saved, but does their lifestyle show it.
"Let us encourage one another- and all the more as you see the Day approaching." One of the biggest misconceptions of church is that the church is full of discouragement. Church should be one of encouragement. Many other times, scripture refers to the encouraging of others, not the discouraging of others. As brothers and sisters of faith, we must encourage each other. Help them with their problems, help them out of their jams. God did not put us on this planet to be islands, but he created us to be needful of each other.
Will all of this convince the unchurched people to attend church? If you go with God’s leading, yes it will. If you do it on your own, they may possibly show up for a while, but when something goes wrong, their logic will state, this church isn’t better than any of the other churches. The biggest thing to do, is to continually encourage one another.
I believe (I may be wrong, but this is just my opinion, based on my own experiences) it is easier to invite a nonbeliever to church than an unchurched person. Who is a nonbeliever? A nonbeliever is a person that has rarely or never heard the gospel message. They may have heard of Jesus in passing, but they have 1. Never set a foot in church. 2. Never accepted Jesus as their savior. With nonbelievers, you just have to break down their walls of ignorance. When dealing with a nonbeliever, it is best to use your own testimony. Most of the time, scripture won’t work. They don’t believe in the power of scripture, so avoid using it if you are able too. No matter how hard their heart is toward God, the one thing they can’t deny is what God has done for you. They may not accept it, but God and you know, you opened the truth to them. You planted a seed, and pray that someone will come along and water it.
What to do with other believers that attend a church somewhere? You still invite them. You may not invite them to church, but you invite them to help with the restoration. How? You invite them to help restore. There are two ways to help restore the church from within. Spiritual and physical.
Spiritually, you can invite them to pray for the church. They can pray individually for the church, or as a congregation, they can pray for the church. As Christians, if we lift up and honor other people of God, then God will bless us for glorifying His family. If we put aside our doctrinal differences and pray for the church down the street, God will not only bless our family, but He will open our hearts and our eyes to the plight of other families of God. As stated earlier, our competition is not with the church down the street, our competition is with Satan.
Physically, you can invite them to help with the changes within the building. I know a small congregation that repainted the sanctuary and removed the pews to put in chairs. The congregation would have been unable to do it, if they wouldn’t have invited another church family to come help with the remodeling process. So, one Saturday about 20 capable people, removed 16 pews, of a length of 15 feet, weighing approximately 500 pounds each. This congregation, could not have done it without the help of the other church. In turn, if a church asks for your help, either by praying or by physical labor, don’t turn them down because they aren’t your denomination. Put that aside, and help because they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.
When restoring the church from within, it is best to invite others. Whether it is in prayer, or rebuilding, invite others to help. "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven." (Matt 18:19)
Have a blessed week
Daniel G Vandenburg